"I just listened to the recording. The concert moved me to my soul." - Jim Folks, Graham, NC

The Farewell Concert

Jay O'Callahan and I performed my farewell concert at the legendary Passim Coffeehouse in Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA on November 12, 2004. (I've moved to Oklahoma after 35 years in the Boston area.)

We told stories - some never heard before - sang songs, and traded tales about our years as performers, workshop leaders, and coaching buddies. For both of us, our friendship has been a key artistic relationship, shaping much of our success as storytellers and workshop leaders.

Jay told his classic story "Max" as well as his new, not-previously recorded stories "Beth Goes to Chicago," "Books," and "Dufflebag Tim."

I told two new, not-previously recorded stories, "A Nous La Liberte" and "The Saphire Girl," and sang four songs, including, "To Answer the Call," "Let the Roan Horse Run," "I've Been in the Storm So Long," and "The Best Age to Be."

Judith Black, longtime friend and colleague (she was there when Jay and I met) took the stage for a brief "roast" of me. She came out carrying a guitar case and referring to stories of "the great rabbi, Rebbe Shmooze."

The program - which sold out in advance and was rewarded with a standing ovation - was an enjoyable evening of entertainment as well as a tribute to the importance of artists helping each other keep going, stay on track, and follow our deepest impulses.

There were the inevitable extraneous noises from the crowd and occasional malfunctions by the venerable Passim sound system - giving the whole recording something of a "bootleg tape" feeling. You'll hear what the capacity crowd heard - squeals and all. (Minus the problems we were able to remove in the editing process.) And you'll have the same first-rate artistic experience.

Passim, formerly Club 47, was a key site in the 1960's folk revival. Joan Baez and Bob Dylan performed here before they were famous. This historic institution has been kept as a lively venue for folk music - and more recently storytelling - by a collaborative of artists.